Uncharted 5: Drake Takes a Break

In its second half, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy felt much more like other Uncharted games -- with thrilling action set-pieces punctuated by narrative-driving, character-building cutscenes (and a few puzzles). The characters of Chloe and Nadine actually became interesting once they stopped reciting flat lines about their backstories, and started dynamically reacting to the bombastic events around them. Not to mention, said set-pieces were of a scale and grandeur that put them among the best in the series.

It's more than good enough to make up for the experimental first half's lackluster story. Although I do think it's kind of a shame that Naughty Dog went so far as to prove they could tell a story in an open-ended map, only to give that section of the game the dull, boring parts of the story.

It actually wasn't clear to me, until well into the second half, "when" Lost Legacy is supposed to take place in the Uncharted timeline. I'd initially assumed that since Nadine was (somewhat) friendly, it was a prequel to Uncharted 4, but as Lost Legacy went on it referenced history from the fourth game. The timeline made sense once that history was established, but it felt weirdly ambiguous up until then.

So, at a relatively brief 6-ish hours, and with a story that wasn't really any good until halfway through, Lost Legacy isn't quite the cream of the Uncharted crop. But it nevertheless delivered just the action thrill-ride I'd expect from the franchise, and also provided an optimistic hint at the open world game that I hope Naughty Dog makes next.

Better than: Uncharted: Drake's Fortune
Not as good as: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End (although its gameplay mechanics are really better than 2 and 3)
The aiming lock-on and lower difficulty made gunplay trivial: but I'd still much rather that, than tirelessly hurl bullets at a dude only to die in one shot.

Progress: Finished on Light (Easy) difficulty.